Kindness

My friend who started #500WordsAbout asked folks to write a post on empathy, kindness, and respect to go along with her t-shirt release (proceeds go to local Seattle charities, and there’s kids sizes!). At the same time, another friend asked an interesting question with his 500 words, and I’ve had a third issue on my mind lately, which I think are all going to neatly tie together so here we go!

I really like doing things for other people. My shrink says I’m very empathetic - which can be a bad thing, it turns out - and as a result, making other people happy is a pretty reliable way to give myself a boost, too. I’m just as likely to send a random person a present on a Thursday in June as I am to send an actual Christmas present. It turns out you can be both empathetic, and terrible at gift-giving holidays, who knew?

I feel so upset that I have had to use those 4 words so much lately. It seems like it should be simple. Be Kind. Two words and you have a pretty decent guide to life. Not perfect, because nothing ever is. Situations are often complex, but for the most part if you are about to do something and you think to yourself “is this kind?” and can answer “yes” then you’re probably doing okay.